Due to Player Safety Concerns, NFLPA Calling For Natural Grass Fields Across the NFL
By Ken Reed
The NFL is experiencing a high injury rate this season. There are probably multiple reasons, including limited training and practice sessions due to Covid-19 and the lack of any preseason games to gradually get in game shape.
But there’s one injury factor that’s been a constant through the years: artificial turf. And the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) is committed to doing something about it.
“The data stands out and the numbers are staggering in the difference in injury rate,” said NFLPA president and Cleveland Browns center JC Tretter.
“We all should be working toward the safest style of play, and we know the dangers of playing on turf. It’s not good for players, it’s not good for the GMs and the head coaches, it’s not good for the owners and it’s not good for the fans. Increased injuries are not good for anybody.”
In a review of the NFL’s injury statistics from 2012 to 2018, the NFLPA found that players have a 28% overall higher rate of non-contact lower extremity injuries on turf and a 32% higher rate of non-contact knee injuries. Non-contact foot or ankle injuries are 69% percent more likely on artificial fields.
Tretter was elected NFLPA president on March 10th and has made player safety and injury prevention a focus of his leadership.
Player safety is “something that from here on out, I think we need to make a priority,” said Tretter.
“Until we can find a way to get synthetic turf to respond and react like natural grass, it’s too much of a danger to continue to play on and expect different results. It’s possible to get grass in every location, and it’s about pushing for that.”
Currently, seventeen NFL teams play their home games on grass and 15 play on artificial turf. But Tretter says there’s no reason that needs to be the case. He pointed out that natural fields are used in cold-weather markets like Cleveland (FirstEnergy Stadium), Green Bay (Lambeau Field) and Pittsburgh (Heinz Field), in addition to enclosed stadiums in Arizona (State Farm Stadium) and Las Vegas (Allegiant Stadium).
“If we know grass is significantly more safe than synthetic turf, it’s about continuing to push forward and making it a priority,” said Tretter.
“This is about continuing to push to provide us with the safest work environment possible. Player safety will always be a priority for us and for the union.”
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #22 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Rethinking Sports Fandom with Author Craig Calcaterra – We discuss Calcaterra’s new book “Rethinking Fandom: How to Beat the Sports-Industrial Complex at Its Own Game” and explore new ways to be a fan in the year 2022.
Listen on Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Anchor and others.
Follow on Facebook: @SportsForumPodcast
More Episodes on Apple Podcasts; Spotify; Google Podcasts; PocketCasts; & Anchor
Episode #21 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Chatting About a Broken Game With Baseball Writer Pedro Moura – Moura is a national baseball writer for Fox Sports. We discuss how and why the game of baseball is broken, what factors caused it, and offer a few thoughts on how to “fix” a great game.
Episode #20 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Coaching Youth and High School Sports Based On What’s Best for the Athlete’s Holistic Development – We chat with long-time youth, high school and college basketball coach Jim Huber.
Episode #19 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Capturing the Spirit of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League with Anika Orrock – We discuss the hoops AAGPFL women had to jump through to play the game they loved as well as the long-term impact and legacy they have in advancing sports opportunities for girls and women.
Episode #18 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking about the 50th Anniversary of Title IX and the Lia Thomas Controversy with Nancy Hogshead-Makar – Hogshead-Makar is a triple gold medalist in swimming, a civil rights attorney and CEO of Champion Women.
Episode #17 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Talking Sports With Legendary New York Times Sports Columnist Robert Lipsyte – We chat about Lipsyte’s amazing career and some of the athletes he covered.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- League of Fans Sports Policy Director Ken Reed quoted in Washington Post column titled "What happened to P.E.? It’s losing ground in our push for academic improvement," by Jay Mathews
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books